This chapter shall be known and may be cited as the Medical Practice Act. Whenever a reference is made to the Medical Practice Act by the provisions of any statute, it is to be construed as referring to the provisions of this chapter.

Protection of the public shall be the highest priority for the Medical Board of California in exercising its licensing, regulatory, and disciplinary functions. Whenever the protection of the public is inconsistent with other interests sought to be promoted, the protection of the public shall be paramount.

Unless otherwise expressly provided, the term “board” as used in this chapter means the Medical Board of California. As used in this chapter or any other provision of law, “Division of Medical Quality” and “Division of Licensing” shall be deemed to refer to the board.

The board shall have the responsibility for the following:

Members of the board shall only be appointed from persons who have been residents of this state for at least the five-year period preceding their appointment. Members of the board, except the public members, shall only be appointed from persons licensed as physicians and surgeons in this state. No person who in any manner owns any interest in any college, school, or institution engaged in medical instruction shall be appointed to the board. Four of the physician members of the board shall hold faculty appointments in a clinical department of an approved medical school in the state, but not more than four members of the board may hold full-time appointments to the faculties of such medical schools.

The public members shall not be licensees of the

board.

The board may appoint panels from its members for the purpose of fulfilling the obligations established in subdivision (c) of Section 2004. Any panel appointed under this section shall at no time be comprised of less than four members and the number of public members assigned to the panel shall not exceed the number of licensed physician and surgeon members assigned to the panel. Each panel shall annually elect a chair and a vice chair.

Each member of the board shall be appointed for a term of four years.

Vacancies occuring on the board shall be filled by appointment of the appointing power for the unexpired term.

The appointing power may remove any member of the board for neglect of duty required by this chapter, incompetency, or unprofessional conduct.

The board shall elect a president, a vice president, and a secretary from its members.

Notice of each meeting of the board shall be given in accordance with the Bagley-Keene Open Meeting Act (Article 9 (commencing with Section 11120) of Chapter 1 of Part 1 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government Code).

The president of the board may call meetings of any duly appointed and created committee or panel of the board at a specified time and place.

The board may establish advisory committees consisting of persons who have a physician’s and surgeon’s certificate issued by the board that is in good standing and members of the public with interest or knowledge of the subject matter assigned to the committee. Members of an advisory committee need not be members of the board.

Each member of the board and its committees shall receive per diem and travel expenses as provided in Section 103.

The board and each committee or panel shall keep an official record of all their proceedings.

The board may adopt, amend, or repeal, in accordance with the provisions of the Administrative Procedure Act, those regulations as may be necessary to enable it to carry into effect the provisions of law relating to the practice of medicine.

The office of the board shall be in the City of Sacramento. Suboffices may be established in the Cities of Los Angeles, San Diego, and San Francisco or the environs of such cities. Notwithstanding any other law, legal proceedings against the board shall be instituted in any one of these four cities. The board may also establish other suboffices as it may deem necessary and such records as may be necessary may be transferred temporarily to any suboffices.

it.